Imrana Jalal

Principal Social Development Specialist (Gender and Development), Sustainable Development and Climate Change Department

A lawyer by profession, Imrana was a Commissioner with the Fiji Human Rights Commission. She is the author of the Law for Pacific Women, architect of the Family Law Act 2005, and former Chair of the UN Committee on Harmful Practices Against Women, and continues to be a member of the Fiji Women’s Rights Movement, Women Living Under Muslim Law, and the Asia-Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development. Ms. Jalal is also a Commissioner on the International Commission of Jurists, Geneva.

Land is power – immutable and unyielding. It provides succor and sustenance. Unfortunately, there is an overwhelming gender gap in land ownership, reinforcing the gender discrimination women face in other spheres.

Why are there so few women in senior management when Asia has had more female state leaders than even Europe? And why does this continue when there is clear evidence that more women in leadership is good for the bottom line?